Deadline Extended for Commercial Drivers' to Self-Certify with RMV

Posted by Matt Perkins:

The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles has extended its deadline for holders of a Commercial Drivers License to meet Federal regulation that requires them to self-certify with the RMV, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation announced. 

A new self-service transaction system, announced by MassDOT earlier this month, is designed to assist commercial drivers maintain compliance with federal regulations. 

The deadline to do so was originally scheduled for Jan. 30, and has been extended by 90 days to April 30. Drivers with US DOT medical certificates will need to provide a copy to the RMV before that date.

"I understand that a CDL is a professional license and our CDL drivers depend on the license for their livelihood," Registrar Rachel Kaprielian said in a statement. "This extension will allow for an orderly completion of the federal requirement and will not unduly burden our drivers." 

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations mandate that all holders of a CDL inform the RMV division of the type of business for which they operate, whether interstate or intrastate, and if they are required to hold a US Department of Transportation medical certificate. 

About 100,000 of the 145,000 CDL holders in the state had self-certified as of mid-January, according to MassDOT. More than 13,000 completed their self-certification online at MassRMV.com, and CDL holders are asked to complete the process online as soon as they can. Drivers are also encouraged to check the status of their self-certification online. 

Failure to complete self-certification by April 30 or failure to re-certify by the self-certification expiration date thereafter will result in the downgrade of the driver's CDL license to a Class D license.